Provisioning and Commissioning a Communications Network with a Virtual Network Operations Center and Interface

ABSTRACT

An interface coupled to a virtual network operations center and coupled to a data communications network having at least one optical channel. Equipment on the data communications network is identified by the interface wherein the interface coordinates and correlates communications between the I/O interfaces of a server coupled to the network so that data rates and data protocols are managed properly. The interface receives commands from and transmits commands to the data communications network and translates the commands to be further transmitted and used in the virtual network operations center coupled to the server. The data communications network is represented in a three dimensions virtual world in the virtual network operations center so that events on the network can be represented in real-time in the virtual network operations center.

This application is a divisional patent application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/539,908 filed on 12 Aug. 2009, which applicationis owned by the same assignee herein and which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present application relates to a method, machine and computerprogram product to provision, configure and manage a computer network,and more specifically, to provision, configure and manage a wavelengthdivision multiplexed computer network using a virtual command interface.

A three-dimensional virtual environment providing near real-time,streaming visual representations for data center management has beendisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,294,705 entitled VIRTUAL NETWORK OPERATIONSCENTER issued 23 Oct. 2012, and U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/747,147 filed on 10 May 2007 entitled HOLOGRAPHIC ENTERPRISE NETWORK,both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety andboth have as a common assignee the assignee of this patent.

Hardware elements such as servers, racks, and power and cooling arestructurally organized and visually represented in the virtual commandcenter that displays platform(s) for equipment, observation decks andcatwalks, display screens, and various infrastructures such as thein-world communications gear. The application of virtual commandcenters, however, has not been extended to wavelength divisionmultiplexing networks within local area networks, metropolitan areanetworks, and wide area networks.

In fiber optic communications, wavelength division multiplexing(hereinafter WDM) is a technology which multiplexes multiple opticalsignals on a single optical fiber using different wavelengths of laserlight to carry different signals. A wavelength division multiplexingsystem uses a multiplexer at the transmitter to join the differentwavelength signals together and a demultiplexer at the receiver to splitthem apart. Because fiber optic communication channels share a commonphysical path, wavelength division multiplexing expands the capacity ofa network without laying more optical fibers which in turn reduces thecost of leased optical fiber while enabling greater communicationbetween remote data centers. In fact, an existing optical infrastructureof WDM and optical amplifiers is capable of accommodating severalgenerations of technology development without having to change thebackbone network. By simply upgrading the multiplexers anddemultiplexers at each end, the capacity of a network link is expanded.

A WDM network is often employed in a metropolitan area network (MAN).WDM networking equipment has unique and difficult management challenges.First, WDM networking equipment does not automatically go onto thenetworks and discover the types of channels, e.g., Ethernet, Infiniband,Fibre Channel, PCI Express, Serial ATA, VoIP, connected on the network.Second, the WDM networking equipment must be manually provisioned andcommissioned by a service technician prior to use. Moreover, whenever achannel type is modified, the WDM networking equipment must be manuallyprovisioned and commissioned again. A WDM network requires networkingequipment at each location; the locations, moreover, are typically quitefar apart, so that at least two technicians are required to be at thedifferent locations on the WDM network at the same time, communicatingvia cell phone or other means to coordinate settings on both ends of alink or a point-to-point connection on the WDM network. If the settingson both ends of the link are not the same, the link does not operateproperly.

Most WDM networks use Transaction Language 1 (TL1) messages formanagement of the network resources. TL1 comprises a set of ASCII-basedinstructions or “messages” to manage a network element and itsresources. Network element vendors use TL1 messages to implementembedded management interfaces for their network elements. TL1 is thedominant management protocol for controlling telecommunications networksin North America today and service providers have large TL1-basedmanagement operation support systems that control the network.

In any network system, it is critical to validate the properconfiguration of the network equipment and enforce configurationconstraints required by the servers. As mentioned, provisioning anexisting network to have a new channel or a new element requires a humanbeing to go to the equipment and manually configure and provision it.Examples of configuration constraints are that a FICON (FiberConnectivity) channel should not be connected to a network interfacethat doesn't support the FICON data rate; another is that two FICONchannels that are supposed to be redundant actually should beprovisioned across two physically redundant WDM paths Improperconfiguration of a WDM client interface to a server can result in afailed link and/or significantly more bit errors to which the serverwill respond by retransmitting numerous requests consuming the server'sresources. Unless a redundant or high availability configuration isvalidated the system administrator could mistakenly think that thenetwork is fault tolerant. In order to correct a problem that arises,moreover, the administrator may attempt to vary a path offline formaintenance, not realizing she/he is disrupting all connectivity to theremote location. It is thus important to validate the configuration of aWDM network.

Once configured, among the unique and most important requirements of aWDM network interface is protection switching. The WDM equipment offersprotection switching that splits traffic across two physically redundantpaths, and when one path is detected as being interrupted, the WDMequipment automatically switches data to the redundant or backup path.Protection switching may be implemented as a unidirectional pathswitched ring or a bidirectional line switched ring, provisioned withinthe network equipment. The failover switch usually occurs within 50-100milliseconds or longer.

Sometimes it becomes necessary to provision a link offline formaintenance, such as repair of a degraded optical fiber connection. Todate, this reprovisioning is achieved manually. Thus, dynamic switching,such as switching from a longer path to a shorter path to reduce latencybetween the attached servers is necessary. Such dynamic switching willimprove performance and/or reduce the need for buffer credit flowcontrol under some protocols such as FICON or Fibre Channel.

Protection switching as above is required for disaster recovery andother synchronous applications, but these applications have additionalrequirements. Timing information of failures or protection switches andother events are not coordinated on the WDM network until equipment logsare taken after the fact and reviewed manually.

The Open Systems Interconnection Reference Model (OSI Reference Model orOSI Model) is an abstract description for layered communications andcomputer network protocol design that, in its most basic form, dividesnetwork architecture into seven layers which, from top to bottom, arethe Application, Presentation, Session, Transport, Network, Data-Link,and Physical Layers. There are quality of service monitoring mechanismsfor Internet traffic that are supposed to prevent network congestion ordelays time through monitoring at various OSI levels but they onlymonitor internet protocols within a server; these mechanisms do notenable communication between a server and network element. There are,moreover, network management systems that control optical switches usinga supervisory communication channel but the switches do not connect thenetwork management system to any other management system, such asanother server. Consequently, an attached server is not aware ofswitching operations within the network. These switches, moreover do notprocess TL1 commands, correlate events on the server and network, ortranslate commands between a server and networking equipment.

There is also a fully transparent network switch that reports its statusto the network management interface but it is independent of anyattached server equipment. While both the switch and network managementinterface support TL1 protocol and other management interfaces, they donot connect to subtended equipment so that servers connected to the WDMare unaware of switch events in the network. Network elements such asrouters, switches, and hubs are capable of providing Simple NetworkManagement Protocol (SNMP) messages for conditions that warrantadministrative attention, such as checking of the IP networkconfiguration and IP protocols, but these equipment do not collectinformation from servers attached to the network or correlate/validatethe servers' requirements with the network configuration. These networkelements, moreover, do not perform in multiprotocol data centerenvironments.

A virtualized control plane used in a high speed optical network testbedhas a configurator tool with a graphical user interface (GUI) interfaceused to configure network parameters across multiple network elements.These network elements support GMPLS, a wide area networking protocolfor wavelength routing. The tool, however, does not collect informationfrom servers attached to the network; nor can it validate serverrequirements because server platforms do not support GMPLS. A wavelengthmultiplexer can be provisioned for data protection, performancemonitoring, and other features using an SNMP interface option but theseexisting multiplexers also do not collect or correlate correspondinginformation from servers attached to the network. An opticalprovisioning layer in a WDM network currently used to reconfigure thetopology and reprovision services in networking equipment has nocapability to collect or correlate the corresponding information fromservers attached to the network. Currently, bandwidth provisioning on aWDM cannot be accomplished through direct communication between theserver and network interfaces. Identification of the number and type ofchannels required by the server are not done on existing WDMs.

At present, timing of add/drop or other events within a WDM network isnot correlated with other events in the servers or other equipmentconnected on the network. A clock source within the WDM network(compatible with SONET standards) may generate a synchronous clockingsignal to retime and regenerate signals after long distances but thesesignals do not signify or communicate events to any servers attached tothe network. Quality of service software that can convert traffic intoand schedule IP data packets also does not interface with the attachedservers. The timing of network protection switch events using a typicalWDM optical switch cannot be controlled by servers transmitting dataover the network.

Transmit data queues and receiver queues are used to associate anidentity with a given packet of data but they do not correlate thetiming of network events with those on a server attached to the network.Tracking a sequence of packets as they transit through a network node asin, for example, logging the time when a given packet passes a givennode, is performed relative to a reference clock within the network, butagain that time is not correlated with any external server clocksthereby making it impossible to associate transit times within thenetwork and events on attached servers.

Servers on a WDM network transmit and receive TL1 commands but to date,there is no TL1 command translation or encapsulation within a virtualnetwork management interface. TL1 commands are not translated into aformat compatible with existing computer management interfaces, orconverted to other formats. There is no coordinated management betweenthe server and WDM equipment, particularly for WDM equipment which maybe located very far away from the server, e.g., 100 kilometers or more.To date, the network does not respond to changes in network resources orchanging conditions on an attached server.

There exists a further need to correlate network events with serverprocessing and messaging.

SUMMARY

Disclosed herein is a computer comprising: a virtual network operationscenter; an interface operationally connected to the virtual networkoperations center; at least one input/output (I/O) port on the interfaceoperable to receive and transmit messages to at least one datacommunications network having at least one optical channel; a tagassociation component that correlates identifiers of a plurality ofequipment connected on the data communications network with one or moredata channels of the computer; and a connection component thatencapsulates the messages for transmission to the virtual networkoperations center; whereby the data communications network isrepresented as a three-dimensional virtual world in the virtual networkoperations center. The data communications network may be a wavelengthdivision multiplexed network, and the interface would be able to receiveand transmit data on the wavelength division multiplexed network. Theinterface can also receive and transmit electrical analog or digitaldata.

The messages may be encapsulated using XML remote procedure callsencoded with the holographic protocol architecture protocol. Themessages transmitted to and from the data communications network may beTL1 messages, and the computer may further comprise a plug in frameworkcomponent that modifies one or more interfaces of the one or moreinput/output (I/O) ports to understand and generate TL1 messages.

Also disclosed herein is an embodiment of a method to provision andcommission a data communications network having at least one opticalchannel, the method having the steps of: extracting network informationabout the network configuration and identifiers of equipment on thenetwork, the interface being operationally connected to the datacommunications network; receiving server information about a server'sI/O configuration, the interface being operationally connected to theserver; assigning server identifiers to one or more I/O adapters of theserver's I/O configuration; modifying one or more of the I/O adapters ofthe server's I/O configuration to read and write messages on the datacommunications network; associating the server identifiers with thenetwork configuration and the one or more identifiers of the equipmenton the network; provisioning the data communications network so thatequipment on the network will receive and transmit data in a protocoland data rate compatible with the one or more I/O adapters of theserver; and rendering the network configuration in a virtual networkoperations center on the server, the virtual network operations centeroperationally connected to the interface.

The method may further generate correlation tags between the equipmenton the data communications network provisioned to receive data from theI/O adapters of the server.

The data communications network may have a plurality of opticalchannels, one or more of which may be connected to a wavelength divisionmultiplexed network.

The method may further extract network information which may compriseone or more of the following: data protocols and data rates of datatransmitted on the data communications network; the topology of the datacommunications and connection information of the equipment on thenetwork, protection switching capabilities of the data communicationsnetwork; one or more regeneration commands for the equipment on the datacommunications network.

Also revealed herein is a computer program product for provisioning andcommissioning a data communications network operatively coupled to aserver, the computer program product having a computer readable storagemedium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, thecomputer readable program code comprising: a network extractioncomponent to extract network configuration information of a datacommunications network; a server extraction component to extractinformation of a server's I/O configuration, the server beingoperationally coupled to the data communications network; an identifiercomponent that assigns identifiers to one or more I/O adapters of theserver's I/O configuration and extracts identifiers of each equipment ofthe data communications network; a tag association component that storesthe identifiers of the one or more I/O adapters of the server and theone or more identifiers of the equipment on the data communicationsnetwork; a tag correlation component to correlate the identifiers of theone or more I/O adapters of the server with the one or more identifiersof the equipment on the data communications network that receives andtransmits data from and to its respective one or more I/O adapters; acommissioning component to control data communications on the datacommunications network so that equipment on the data communicationsnetwork will receive and transmit data in a protocol and data rate andon a channel compatible with other equipment on the data communicationsnetwork; and a communications component to transmit the networkconfiguration to a virtual network operations center operationallycoupled to the server.

The computer program product may also have a plug-in framework componentcomprising one or more plug-ins for the one or more I/O adapters of theserver's I/O configuration to translate the I/O adapter's protocol to aprotocol for transmission on the data communications network. There mayalso be a TL1 component to read and write TL1 commands from and to thedata communications network within the computer program product; as wellas a network event component to provide protection switching andregeneration commands when an event occurs on the data communicationsnetwork.

Further described herein is a service to couple a wavelength divisionmultiplexed network to at least one server, the service comprisinginstalling at least one interface on the server to couple with thewavelength division multiplexed network; installing a virtual networkoperating center on the server; coupling the at least one interface withthe virtual network operating center; coupling the at least oneinterface to receive and transmit TL1 messages on the wavelengthdivision multiplexed network; modifying one or more I/O interfaces ofthe server to receive and transmit TL1 messages; and encapsulating theTL1 messages to send to the virtual network operating center.

A service to provision and commission a wavelength division multiplexednetwork is also offered, the provisioning and commissioning servicecomprising: acquiring configuration information of all elements coupledto the wavelength division multiplexed; acquiring configurationinformation of at least one I/O interface of a server coupled to thewavelength division multiplexed network; modifying the at least one I/Ointerface of the server to receive and transmit commands understandableby the all elements of the wavelength division multiplexed network;determining which elements of the wavelength division multiplexednetwork should receive and transmit data of the same protocol and datarate; determining which pathways of the wavelength division multiplexednetwork are redundant; determining alternative pathways of thewavelength division multiplexed network; determining protectionswitching for the wavelength division multiplexed network; determiningwhether and the type of regeneration commands for the elements of thewavelength division multiplexed network; and representing the wavelengthdivision multiplexed network in a virtual network operating centercoupled to the interface and to the server.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram of a computer network systemconsistent with an embodiment of a server connected on a wavelengthdivision multiplexed network.

FIG. 2 is a simplified representation of a WDM network.

FIG. 3 is a more detailed block diagram of the various hardware andsoftware components connected on a WDM network in accordance withvarious embodiments described herein. It is suggested that FIG. 3 beprinted on the face of the patent.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of components implementing anembodiment of the VNOC in the server.

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram of components used in the HEI toimplement the processes in accordance with the embodiments describedherein.

FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram of other components used in the HEIto implement the processes for a WDM in accordance with the embodimentsdescribed herein.

FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of components within the computersystem to implement event and time synchronization on the WDM network.

FIG. 8 is a representation of how a TL1 command is encapsulated withinthe HEI for transmission to and understanding by the VNOC in accordancewith an embodiment described herein.

FIG. 9 is a simplified flow chart of the process steps and componentsused for configuring the WDM network in accordance with an embodimentdescribed herein.

FIG. 10 is a simplified flow chart of the process steps and componentsused for verification and reconfiguration of the WDM network inaccordance with an embodiment described herein.

FIG. 11 is a simplified flow chart of the process steps and componentsused to provide protection switching in the WDM network in accordancewith embodiments described herein.

FIG. 12 is a simplified flow chart of the process steps and componentswhereby events occurring on the WDM network can be synchronized withevents occurring on the server in accordance with embodiments describedherein.

FIG. 13 is a representation of how a WDM network can be represented in avirtual command center in accordance with embodiments described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1, shown is a high-level block diagram of a computernetwork system 100 having a server 110 connected on a wavelengthdivision multiplexed network 170. Computer network system 100 preferablycomprises a number of secure networked servers 110, each of which mayhave one or more central processing units (CPU) 112, memory 114, andvarious digital, analog, and/or optical interfaces 128-138. CPU 112,memory 114, interfaces 128-138 and various other internal devicescapable that communicate with each other via an internal communicationsbus arrangement 122. CPU 112 is a general-purpose programmable processorexecuting computer program instructions stored in memory 114. A singleCPU 112 is shown in FIG. 1 but it should be understood that some servers110 have multiple CPUs in an arrangement called a sysplex. CPUs 112 arecapable of executing an operating system 120 and various applications.CPUs 112 are also capable of generating, receiving and transmitting thecomputer program components embodying the VNOC 150 and HEI 136components that manage the WDM network 170. Communications bus 122supports transfer of data, commands and other information betweendifferent devices and interfaces; and while shown in simplified form asa single bus, it is typically structured as multiple buses including aninternal bus 124 which may connect the CPUs 112 directly with memory114.

Memory 114 is shown conceptually as a single monolithic entity but it iswell known that memory is often arranged in a hierarchy of caches andother memory devices, some or all of which may be integrated into thesame semiconductor substrates as the CPUs 112. Memory 114 comprises aread only memory (ROM) 116 that typically stores those portions orprograms, routines, modules of the operating system 120 necessary to“boot up” the system. Random-access memory (RAM) 118 devices comprisethe main storage of computer as well as any supplemental levels ofmemory, e.g., cache memories, nonvolatile or backup memories,programmable or flash memories, other read-only memories, etc. RAM 118is also considered the volatile memory storing programs and data thatare executing as well as the operating system 120, a VNOC 150, a HEI136, and other applications, data and programs such as graphical userinterfaces, application program interfaces by which the VNOC 150 and theHEI 136 can monitor the WDM network 170. In addition, memory 114 may beconsidered to include memory storage physically located elsewhere inserver 110, e.g., a cache memory in another processor or other storagecapacity used as a virtual memory such as on a mass storage device or onanother server 110 coupled to server 110 via a network. It is fullyrealizable that the VNOC 150 and the modified HEI 136 can be used todetect and interpret events on the WDM 170 and other servers 110 alsoconnected on the WDM 170 in accordance with the teachings herein.

Operating system 120 provides, inter alia, functions such as deviceinterfaces, management of memory pages, management of multiple tasks,etc. as is known in the art. Examples of such operating systems mayinclude Linux, Aix, Unix, Windows-based, Z/os, V/os, OS/400, an Rtos, ahandheld operating system, etc. In one embodiment described herein, theoperating system is z/OS for IBM'S zSeries servers. Operating system 120and other variants of the VNOC 150 and the modified HEI 136, and otherapplications, other components, programs, objects, modules, etc. mayalso execute on one or more servers 110 coupled to server 110 via anetwork 170, 180, e.g., in a distributed or client-server computingenvironment, whereby the processing required to implement the functionsof a computer program may be allocated to multiple computers 110 over anetwork 170, 180.

In general, software components of the VNOC 150 and the modified HEI 136execute within the CPUs 112 to implement the embodiments describedherein, whether implemented as part of an operating system or a specificapplication, component, program, object, module or sequence ofinstructions may be referred to herein as computer programs or simplycomponents. The VNOC 150 and the modified HEI 136 typically comprise oneor more instructions that are resident at various times in variousmemory 114 and storage in a device and that, when read and executed byone or more CPUs 112 in the server 110, cause that server 110 to performthe steps necessary to execute steps or elements embodying the variousaspects of the methods and processes described herein.

It should be appreciated that server 110 typically includes suitableanalog, digital and optical interfaces 128-138 between CPUs 112, memory114 and the attached devices. For instance, server 110 typicallyreceives a number of inputs and outputs for communicating informationexternally. For interface with a human database administrator or user,server 110 typically includes one or more software developer inputdevices 162-164, e.g., a keyboard, a mouse, a trackball, a joystick, atouchpad, and/or a microphone, among others, and a visual displaymonitor or panel, and/or a speaker, telephone, among others. It shouldbe appreciated, however, that some implementations of server 110 do notsupport direct software developer input and output. Terminal interface134 may support the attachment of single or multiple terminals 144 orlaptop computers 144 and may be implemented as one or multipleelectronic circuit cards or other units. Data storage preferablycomprises a storage server functionally connected to one or morerotating magnetic hard disk drive units, although other types of datastorage, including a tape or optical driver, could be used. Foradditional storage, memory 114 of server 110 may also include one ormore mass storage devices such as a floppy or other removable diskdrive, a hard disk drive, a direct access storage device (DASD), anoptical drive e.g., a compact disk (CD) drive, a digital video disk(DVD) drive, etc., and/or a tape drive, a flash memory, among others.Other memories may be located on storage, including RAMs or mass storagedevices of different servers 110 connected through various networks. Inthe context herein memory 114 may also be considered nonvolatile orbackup memories or a programmable or flash memories, read-only memories,etc., in a device physically located on a different computer, client,server, or other hardware memory device, such as a mass storage deviceor on another computer coupled to computer via network. Memory 114 maycomprise remote archival memory such as one or more rotating magnetichard disk drive units, a tape or optical driver. One of skill in the artwill further anticipate that one or more interfaces 128-138 may bewireless.

Furthermore, server 110 includes an interface 136, 138 with one or morenetworks 170, 180 to permit the communication of information with otherservers coupled to the network(s) 170, 180. Network interface(s) 136,138 provides a physical and/or wireless connection for transmission ofdata to and from a network(s) 170, 180. Network(s) 170, 180 may be theInternet, as well as any smaller self-contained network such as anIntranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a wide area network (WAN), alocal area network (LAN), or other internal or external network using,e.g., telephone transmissions lines, satellites, fiber optics, T1 lines,wireless, public cable, etc. and any various available technologies.Communication with computer system 100 may be provided further via adirect hardwired connection (e.g., serial port), or via an addressableconnection that may utilize any combination of wireline and/or wirelesstransmission methods. Moreover, conventional network connectivity, suchas Token Ring, Ethernet, WiFi or other conventional communicationsstandards could be used. Still yet, connectivity could be provided byconventional TCP/IP sockets-based protocol.

As described herein, a wavelength division multiplexed network 170 isconnected through a HEI 136 and a VNOC 150 implemented on server 110.One of ordinary skill in the art understands that server 110 may beconnected to more than one network 170, 180 simultaneously. Server 110and remote servers 110 may be desktop or personal computers,workstations, a minicomputer, a midrange computer, a mainframe computer.Any number of servers, clients, computers and other microprocessordevices, such as personal handheld computers, personal digitalassistants, wireless telephones, etc., which may not necessarily havefull information handling capacity as the large mainframe servers, mayalso be networked through network(s) 170, 180. Still yet, any of thecomponents of the methods and program products shown in the embodimentsof FIG. 1 through FIG. 13 could be deployed, managed, serviced by aservice provider who prioritizes searches to a databases based on searchtemplate attributes.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, one or more of theembodiments described herein may be embodied as a system, method orcomputer program product. Accordingly, the present invention may takethe form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely softwareembodiment (including components, firmware, resident software,micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardwareaspects that may all generally be referred to herein as a “circuit,”“module” or “system.” Furthermore, the present invention may take theform of a computer program product embodied in any tangible medium ofexpression having computer-usable program code embodied in the medium.

Any combination of one or more computer usable or computer readablemedium(s) may be utilized. The computer-usable or computer-readablemedium may be, for example but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic,optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus,device, or propagation medium. More specific examples (a non-exhaustivelist) of the computer-readable medium would include the following: anelectrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computerdiskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory(ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flashmemory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory(CDROM), an optical storage device, a transmission media such as thosesupporting the Internet or an intranet, or a magnetic storage device.Note that the computer-usable or computer-readable medium could even bepaper or another suitable medium upon which the program is printed, asthe program can be electronically captured, via, for instance, opticalscanning of the paper or other medium, then compiled, interpreted, orotherwise processed in a suitable manner, if necessary, and then storedin a computer memory. In the context of this document, a computer-usableor computer-readable medium may be any medium that can contain, store,communicate, propagate, or transport the program for use by or inconnection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.The computer-usable medium may include a propagated data signal with thecomputer-usable program code embodied therewith, either in baseband oras part of a carrier wave. The computer usable program code may betransmitted using any appropriate medium, including but not limited towireless, wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc.

Computer program code for carrying out operations of the presentinvention may be written in any combination of one or more programminglanguages, including an object oriented programming language such asJava, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programminglanguages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programminglanguages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer,partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partlyon the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely onthe remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remotecomputer may be connected to the user's computer through any type ofnetwork or the connection may be made to an external computer by, forexample, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider.

The present invention is described below with reference to flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems) andcomputer program products according to embodiments of the invention. Itwill be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/orblock diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computerprogram instructions. These computer program instructions may beprovided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purposecomputer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce amachine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor ofthe computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, createmeans for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchartand/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in acomputer-readable medium that can direct a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instruction meanswhich implement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer orother programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series ofoperational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmableapparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that theinstructions which execute on the computer or other programmableapparatus provide processes for implementing the functions/actsspecified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the FIGS. illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the FIGS. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be notedthat each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, andcombinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-basedsystems that perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations ofspecial purpose hardware and computer instructions.

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of a basic WDM network 170. Serversand/or clients 110, 140 are connected to a WDM channel extension 220.WDM channel extension 220 (also called a WDM box) in turn is connectedto an optical network 170, such as a dual redundant optical network. TheWDM network 170 is then connected to one or more other WDM channelextensions or boxes 230 which are connected to other servers and/orstorage 110, 140.

FIG. 3 provides more detail of the basic WDM network 170 which can beused in accordance with the embodiments described herein. A plurality ofservers 110 and clients 140 are shown having interfaces 132-138connected on a WDM network 170 to transmit and receive messages and datain different protocols on different channels to various clients,servers, or other network equipment. Each WDM channel extension 210,220, 230 has a number of channels/ports 314 x, 324 x, 334 x to receiveand transmit these messages and data in the various protocols andchannels. WDM channel extensions 210, 220, 230 such as those provided byCISCO, NORTEL and other vendors are known in the art. Each WDM channelextension 210, 220, 230 may have a respective TL1 interface 312, 322,332 connected to a WDM network 170 to transmit and receive TL1 messages.The WDM network 170 is connected through the HEI 136 to a VNOC 150executing on a server 110.

The VNOC 150 is a software and hardware component installed on a server110 that provides a virtual world of the WDM network 170 and representsthe equipment, the channels, the protocols, the servers, etc. on the WDMnetwork 170; see FIG. 13 for how the network can be displayed as aresult of the VNOC. The VNOC 150 also provides one or more computergenerated icons or avatars to travel through this three-dimensionalrepresentation of the WDM network 170 to configure, provision, reroutesignals, perform maintenance, protection switching, etc. on the WDMnetwork. The VNOC 150 is a platform which allows a single common view ofhardware and the WDM equipment that are typically geographicallydistributed among multiple locations. The hardware is depicted asthree-dimensional graphical icons in a virtual environment where theseicons are interactive and manipulible by avatars within the virtualworld. The VNOC 150 enables the WDM network to be monitored, managed,reconfigured and maintained proactively in real time. One VNOC 150 thatcan be implemented when modified with the embodiments described hereinis described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/747,157 entitledVIRTUAL NETWORK WDM NETWORK 170 filed 10 May 2007, which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety and has a common assignee asthis patent.

Components of VNOC 150 are shown in FIG. 4. In the embodiments describedherein, server 110 is executing the software components generating theVNOC 150. Although the VNOC 150 is shown as implemented in only oneserver 110 connected on the network 170, any server 110 or client 140may also have a VNOC 150. VNOC 150 is generated in a simulated threedimensional observation space such as a 256×256×768 three-dimensionalvector space. The observation space provides a virtual universe in whichone or more operators can engage and interact as avatars or bots, forexample, within the VNOC 150 to view and manipulate virtual componentsthat mirror actual components and operations on the network 170 and inthe server 110, such as shown in FIG. 13. VNOC 150 includes a system forgenerating an observation platform 420 from which the VNOC 150 can beviewed, a navigation system 424 for navigating throughout the VNOC 150,an operational interface system 428 for interfacing with server 110 andHEI 136 to effectuate actual changes in the WDM network 170, a systemfor rendering three dimensional models 440 (also referred to herein asrezzers) from three-dimensional models database 470, a system forrendering virtual displays 444, a cuing system 448, a communications hub460, and a virtual enterprise, i.e., holographic bus 474. VNOC 150 mayfurther include data channel banks 464 for receiving and sending datasuch as XML-RPC, email, and other channels to/from a two-dimensionalinfrastructure, and queues 468. Data channel banks 464 allow forparallel messaging while queues 468 facilitate asynchronouscommunications. These components interact to generate and maintain amirror image of the WDM network 170 and to provide spatial, visual, andaudio cues that alert and inform operators of conditions and events onthe WDM network 170. An actual control center (not shown) of the WDMnetwork 170 may execute on server 110 and may comprise any type ofenterprise management environment, e.g., a data center, a utilityservice providers, military command and control systems, etc. Databetween the server 110 and the WDM network 170 can be passed back andforth in near real-time such that actual operational information can beviewed in the three-dimensional virtual simulator system 420 of the VNOC150. Operations affecting the WDM network 170 are implemented via theoperational interface 428 of the VNOC 150.

In the illustrative examples described herein, VNOC 150 is generated andautomatically rendered as a holographic observation space. The state ofVNOC 150 is maintained with data from an actual WDM network 170. Asnoted, VNOC 150 represents both the spatial and operationalconfiguration of the real WDM network 170. Thus, an operator maynavigate VNOC 150 as if they were inside the actual WDM network 170and/or on the actual WDM network 170.

Three dimensional models 440 includes representations of any hardware orsoftware component found in the WDM network 170 including systems,processes, devices, programs, equipment, servers, HVAC, floor plans,etc. The component, i.e., rezzers, for rendering three-dimensionalmodels 440, moreover, can be configured to display expanded or layeredviews of the internals of any other component on the WDM network 170.For example, clicking on a server 110 or a client 140 connected to thenetwork 170 may show visual cues of the server's/client's CPU, harddisk, and logical partitions. Further clicking on any of thesecomponents shows or expands the next level of detail. Middlewarearchitecture can also be rendered in three-dimensional in the VNOC 150to show a three-dimensional representation of operating systems,application servers, databases, web services, transaction flows, andultimately virtual business processes. The hardware and softwarerenderings may be layered in three-dimensional on a rendered platformand appear as a virtual stack with the systems on the bottom andbusiness processes on the top.

Cueing system 448 provides a mechanism for cuing an operator of somerelevant information associated with a modeled component. In particular,cuing system 448 presents visual and audio cues to alert operators ofconditions and events in the WDM network 170. These cues may comprisealerts that change color of a component, highlight a component with athree-dimensional arrow, sound an alert message, set off variousbeacons, etc. Cues may occur in response to hardware faults, middlewareor operating system configuration issues, business process performanceissues, etc.

Communications hub 460 manages communications between VNOC 150 andserver 110, the HEI 136 and the WDM network 170. Such communications canbe local such as from the server 110 or remote from the WDM network 170or other connected network. The communications hub 460 dispatches androutes messages from all channels to the holographic bus 474. Theholographic bus 474 then delivers messages to the appropriate renderinginfrastructure. In this illustrative embodiment, the HEI 136encapsulates data from the WDM network 170 into packets using XML-RPC(remote procedure calls) encoded with the Holographic ProtocolArchitecture (HPA). HPA is a predefined protocol utilized by a scalableinterface, e.g., implemented as a two-dimensional JAVA server thatprocesses information associated with operations of the WDM network 170which are ultimately rendered in three-dimensional by VNOC 150.Communications hub 460 also receives and transmits other communications,such as email, between VNOC 150 and HEI 136. Communications hub 460receives messages from the HEI 136 which decodes the packets. Thesepackets are then used by the VNOC 150 for rendering three-dimensionalmodels by virtual displays and by cues within the VNOC 150. Thecommunications hub 460 also manages outgoing communications and aqueuing system to dispatch packets to the HEI 136.

Communications with the VNOC 150 are based on interobject messages usingcommunications channels and email. For example, the rezzers receivecommunications about which types of equipment, middleware, and processobjects to model, and the virtual displays receive information ofinterest about the operations being managed. Operators are able toperform all management functions, such as provisioning a logicalpartition on a distant server connected on the WDM network 170, acluster, or an entire grid, as well as install and configure operatingsystems and middleware on the WDM network 170 by interacting with thethree-dimensional models.

The holographic enterprise interface (HEI) 136 provides the middlewarebetween the VNOC 150 and the WDM network 170; in other words, the HEI136 is the bridge from the actual reality of the WDM network 170 to thevirtual reality created and displayed by the VNOC 150. The physicalconnection between the HEI 136 and WDM network equipment 210 may be aserial or parallel copper wiring cable connection, such as an Ethernetconnection or similar broadband connection. Modified as describedherein, one HEI 136 that can be used within the embodiments describedherein is set forth in Docket No. END920070184US1, U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/747,147 filed on 10 May 2007 entitledHOLOGRAPHIC ENTERPRISE NETWORK, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety and has a common assignee as this patent.

Components of the HEI are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG. 5 is a simplifiedblock diagram of the HEI 136 and connecting infrastructure. HEI 136comprises a WDM functional component 510, a plurality of I/O adapters530 modified with a plug-in framework 535, a plurality of I/Oconnections 540, a management component 550, a communications component560, a bootstrap component 570 and a runtime component 580. The WDMfunctional component 510 encompasses several subcomponents thattranslate data from the WDM network 170 and other connections 540 into aformat recognizable and usable by the VNOC 150. The I/O connections 540include fiber optics and electrical analog and digital connections, suchas Ethernet, T1, etc. Data communication over these I/O connections 540from the WDM network 170 must be translated into a format understandableand usable by VNOC 150. The I/O adapters 530 are modified by plug-inframework components 535 to allow translation of the various formatsassociated with the I/O adapters 530 into a format understandable andusable by the VNOC 150. Similarly, data from the actual control centeron the server 110 must be translated for the component on the WDMnetwork 170 to respond. The bootstrap component 570 allows a coldboot-up of the HEI 136. The runtime component 580 provides one or morevirtual machines of, e.g., JAVA, LINUX, zVM, etc. The managementcomponent 550 manages communications including events, scheduling,database operations, logging, management and kernel operations.

To accomplish the bridging of data transmission between the virtualworld of the VNOC 150 and the actual world of the WDM network 170, theHEI 136 is modified with additional components as shown in FIG. 6. TheWDM functionality component 520 has a TL1 component 620 and a tagassociation component 630. The TL1 component 620 comprises a TL1interface 542 for transmission and receipt of TL1 commands. The tagassociation component 630 generates and stores TL1 IDs and correlationtags for network equipment on the WDM network 170. The tag associationcomponent 630 also associates the UUIDs of the ports in the server withthe TL1 correlation tags of the WDM equipment on the WDM network 170;this enables operations such as provisioning the network equipment. TheWDM functionality component 520 further has other components associatedwith processes and functions described with respect to the flow charts;these include a provisioning/commissioning component 900, aconfiguration validation component 1000, a protection switchingcomponent 1100, and a synchronization component 1200, as will beexplained herein.

The plug-in framework components 535 modify the I/O adapters 530 ofdifferent data protocols transmitted on the WDM network 170 and otherconnected networks. In order for data in these protocols to berepresented in the VNOC 150, the HEI 136 provides the plug-in frameworkcomponents 535 as application program interfaces that translate betweentwo dimensional data and three-dimensional data. The plug-in frameworkcomponents 535 allow communication with the WDM network 170 to provisionand commission third party networking equipment, such as WDM channelextensions 210, 220, 230.

HEI communication component 560 allows bidirectional communications withthe server 110 and the VNOC 150. The HEI communications component 560cooperates with the tag association component 630 and encapsulates theTL1 commands for transmission in holographic protocol architecture (HPA)format to the VNOC 150. The HEI communications component 560 alsoreceives HPA protocol messages from the VNOC 150 and simulatesconnections to the WDM network 170 and different protocols used by theserver 110. HEI communication component 560 implements HPA and XML-RPC.XML-RPC is a remote procedure call protocol that uses XML to encode itscalls and HTTP as a transport mechanism. XML-RPC is a simple protocoldefining only a handful of data types and commands. In addition, HEIcommunications component 560 allows other communication formats to flowback and forth, including, e.g., email, HTTP, binary packets, etc. TheHEI communications component 560 may be connected to HEI buffers 562,the purpose of which is to store an amount of data transmitted from theserver 110 to the WDM network 170, which data can be retrieved so it isnot lost during network protection switching as described with respectto FIGS. 11 and 12.

FIG. 7 illustrates additional components comprising the HEI thatcoordinate and synchronize events occurring on the WDM network 170 withprocessing data in the server 110. The HEI 136 has been implemented witha TL1 heartbeat queue 720, preferably a FIFO that stores a series ofheartbeat signals received in TL1 messages arriving from the WDM network170 at the TL1 interface 314 x for at least the previous 50milliseconds. The HEI 136 also contains a synchronization component 1200that receives a time sync signal from the server and is able tosynchronize the server's data with the TL1 heartbeat signal 734, as willbe described further in FIG. 12.

As briefly mentioned earlier, the simulated connection component 640 ofthe HEI 136 encapsulates TL1 messages into a Holographic ProtocolArchitecture (HPA) format understandable to the VNOC 150. The TL1 inputmessage is a message from equipment on the WDM network 170, such as aclient 140 or a router 322 or other equipment to the VNOC 150. Forinstance, an alert that indicates a WDM equipment has experienced afailure on one of its links will send a TL1 message using the TL1command code set defined by the WDM equipment provider. The HEI 136 willencapsulate the TL1 message and forward it to the VNOC 150 so that thefailure can be represented in the virtual world. The HPA packet 800 isshown in FIG. 8. The HPA packet type header 810 of four bytes and thesequence number 820 of two bytes of this particular HPA packet, a field830 of two bytes for the total number of packets in the HPA message, atwo-byte field 840 for the HPA location ID of the processor generatingthe HPA message. The payload 850 containing the TL1 message is formattedas follows: TL1 input message 854, command codes 858 of variable lengthdescribing the nature of the event being reported or the command whichis being requested, the transmit identifier (TID) 862 of two bytes whichidentifies that piece of WDM equipment that generated the TL1 command; asource identifier (SID) 866 of two bytes which identifies whichsubsystem within the WDM equipment that generated the TL1 command isaffected by the command, e.g., which card in a network chassis; and aCTAG 870 or correlation tag having eight bytes that correlates messagesto various related events. Thus, the HEI 136 connects server 110 toother systems connected on the WDM network 170 and transforms theirnative systems management interfaces into the HPA, and managescommunications with the virtual world. Of course, one of skill in theart understands that the number of bytes assigned to a particular fieldand, indeed, the fields themselves are chosen for a particularembodiment and as the embodiments change, so also will the number ofbytes, the fields in the messages. Even the choice of a TL1 command isbased on the equipment in the WDM network 170 and as the equipmentchanges its command format, so all will the messages that will beencapsulated by the HEI 136 for transmission to the VNOC 150.

Process steps of a component 900 to provision and commission a WDMnetwork 170 are shown in FIG. 7. In step 920, the HEI 136 reads the TL1interface to receive TL1 messages. From these TL1 messages, the HEI 136reads information about the WDM network, its equipment, such as adaptercards, power modules, the WDM channel extensions 220, 420 etc. andtopology. The HEI 136 also obtains information about the client sidechannel types and networking configuration, the source ids (SIDs) andtransmit ids (TIDs), for instance, the channels/ports 420 x and 430 x inFIG. 4 and, for example, point-to-point or multipoint ring, with orwithout protection switching This information can be extracted from amanagement information base (MIB), a computing information repository,that may, for example, use simple network management protocol (SNMP)with put/place commands enabled. In step 940, the HEI 136 assigns sourceand target identifiers (SID/TID) to each piece of equipment on the WDMnetwork 170. Different types of correlation tags relate one message typeto another.

Likewise, in step 940, the HEI 136 reads data from the server 110 aboutits output I/O interface types and desired configuration, such as, forexample, three FICON channels from host chip id 01A, 02B, ten Ethernetchannels, and OFF. Server I/O types can be obtained from a managementinformation base but configuration information may be obtained from theserver hardware management console or input manually within the VNOC150. In step 940, the HEI 136 assigns artificial TL1 Ids (AIDs) to theserver 110 and the server's I/O adapters. The HEI 136 assigns an ID toeach server 110 on the WDM network 170. There may be at least tworedundant servers on opposite ends of a disaster recovery network. Instep 950, the HEI 136 associates the channel types and data rates of theserver's I/O adapters to ports, client protocols, data rates, andinterface types on the WDM equipment. In step 960, the HEI 136 may sendTL1 commands to the WDM networking box 220 to provision its interfacesto receive the server's data protocols and rates on particular ports,i.e., to change the data rate or protocol or make the channel aprotected or unprotected channel and the type of regeneration signal. Instep 970, the HEI 136 initiates appropriate error handling and alerts,and generates correlation tags between the I/O adapters and protocols ofthe server 110 and elements connected to the WDM networking equipment.

One of skill in the art will appreciate that the WDM network equipmentcan be provisioned and commissioned from either end of the WDM network170. If, moreover, the WDM network equipment provides an inband oroutband TL1 management channel (see 422 and 432 in FIG. 4 and if one ofthe channel/ports 420 x, 430 x is a TL1 interface), then both ends ofthe WDM network 170 can be provisioned from a single endpoint having themodified HEI 136. Today, this operation is performed manually by skilledfield technicians, a process which is costly, time consuming, and proneto errors.

The component 1000 that validates the configuration of a WDM network 170using a VNOC 150 may execute the process steps shown in FIG. 10. In step1020, the HEI 136 obtains information from the WDM networking equipment220, 230 about its channel types and networking configuration includingtopology which can be obtained from its MIB using SNMP protocol. In step1030, the HEI obtains I/O interface information and a desiredconfiguration from the server 110. In step 1040, the HEI 136 comparesthe channel types, data rates, regeneration type, and protectionrequirements of the server 110 with the client protocol and interfaceson the WDM networking box 220, 230. If there is another node on the WDMnetwork, as in step 1050, the HEI 136 obtains this information for eachnode. Once all the nodes on the WDM network 170 have been accounted foras in step 1040, the network configuration is thus verified as in step1060. This WDM network configuration, including topology of primary andsecondary traffic paths, is then encapsulated in HPA commands andtransmitted to the VNOC 150 for display of this WDM network, as in step1070. In this way, any subsequent status change on individual ports, asin for example, a failure in the WDM equipment or an unplugged cable ona server is visible to the HEI 136 and to the server 110 although suchevents are usually not visible to the server 110 or the networkequipment 220 or both. In step 1080, this process can repeat itselfperiodically on a polled basis or whenever this is a change that affectsthe WDM network 170, or a qualified reconfiguration of the WDM network170.

FIG. 11 presents the process steps undertaken by the protectionswitching component 1100 to provide transparent protection switching onthe WDM network through a VNOC 150. In step 1120, the HEI 136 receives aTL1 protection switch message from the WDM networking box 220 indicatinga condition on the WDM network that may require rerouting or switchingcommunications. In step 1130, the HEI 136 decodes the source ID, readsthe protection associated with the SID, correlates the SID to the AID ofthe server 110. The HEI 136 then encapsulates the TL1 protection switchmessage into HPA protocol as described above and sends the HPA messageto the server 110 via the VNOC 150 to pause the I/O channel(s). In step1140, the HEI 136 may further respond by suspending networkcommunication on that channel(s) as in step 1150, reprovisioning trafficto a redundant or other pathway as in step 1160, queuing outgoingtraffic to the WDM network for a suitable period of time to allowswitching, e.g., 50 milliseconds, in HEI buffers as in step 1170. A usermay also manually switch the traffic in step 1180 using the VNOC 150.

FIG. 12 provides a simplified flow chart of the method steps executed bythe synchronization component 1200 to process synchronous events betweenservers and associated network equipment using the VNOC 150. Toimplement synchronous event processing, a hardware interface isincorporated into the HEI 136 such as was shown in FIG. 7. The timinginterface permits a time synchronization signal 734 from the server 110,such as from the System Z STI or Sysplex Timer interface, to be used asthe reference by which to synchronize activities between the variousnetwork and server elements. In step 1220, an optional time stamp fieldis enabled in TL1 commands at the WDM networking equipment. Because ofthe enablement, a periodic heartbeat function transmits WDM networkstatus to the TL1 interface of the HEI 136 on a regular basis as in step1230. The HEI 136 decodes this time stamp in step 1240 and coordinatesthe time of day with a timestamp from the server 110, such as a SysplexTimer timestamp in step 1250. In step 1260, the HEI 136 updates the VNOC150 to reflect the proper network and server coordinated status. Thissignal would be used in software or firmware by the HEI 136 to insuresynchronous processing of events on the WDM network and server I/Ointerfaces thereby preserving data integrity in the event of a networkfailure by, e.g., determining which data remains valid when a failureoccurs and discarding any invalid data. This function is especiallyuseful in synchronous disaster recovery such as, for example real timetransaction mirroring used in financial sector applications.

It should be appreciated that the teachings of the present inventioncould be offered as a business method on a subscription or fee basis.For example, a computer system 100 comprising VNOC 150 and HEI 136 maybe created, maintained and/or deployed by a service provider that offersthe functions described herein for customers. That is, a serviceprovider could offer to provide data processing as described above. Thisincludes, e.g., rendering a three-dimensional representation of the WDMnetwork and a server having a data center, the WDM network's middlewareand processes.

Advantages of such a three-dimensional model include immersiveinteraction with familiar spatial and visual characteristics, theability for multiple personnel to interact together in the virtualenvironment despite geographic distances, and many other significantadvantages.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of the stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended toinclude any structure, material, or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present invention has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the artwithout departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Theembodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain theprinciples of the invention and the practical application, and to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention forvarious embodiments with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated.

1. A computer comprising: a virtual network operations center; aninterface operationally connected to the virtual network operationscenter; at least one input/output (I/O) port on the interface operableto receive and transmit messages to at least one data communicationsnetwork having at least one optical channel; a tag association componentthat correlates identifiers of a plurality of equipment connected on thedata communications network with one or more data channels of thecomputer; and a connection component that encapsulates the messages fortransmission to the virtual network operations center; whereby the datacommunications network is represented as a three-dimensional virtualworld in the virtual network operations center.
 2. The computer of claim1 wherein the data communications network is a wavelength divisionmultiplexed network.
 3. The computer of claim 2 wherein the interfacecan receive and transmit data on the wavelength division multiplexednetwork.
 4. The computer of claim 1 wherein the interface can receiveand transmit electrical data.
 5. The computer of claim 4 wherein theelectrical data is analog data.
 6. The computer of claim 4 wherein theelectrical data is digital data.
 7. The computer of claim 1 wherein themessages are TL1 messages transmitted to and from the datacommunications network.
 8. The computer of claim 7 further comprising aplug in framework component that modifies one or more interfaces of theone or more input/output (I/O) ports to understand and generate TL1messages.
 9. The computer of claim 1 wherein the protocol in which themessages are encapsulated using XML remote procedure calls encoded withthe holographic protocol architecture protocol. 10-22. (canceled)
 23. Aservice to couple a wavelength division multiplexed network to at leastone server, comprising: installing at least one interface on the serverto couple with the wavelength division multiplexed network; installing avirtual network operating center on the server; coupling the at leastone interface with the virtual network operating center; coupling the atleast one interface to receive and transmit TL1 messages on thewavelength division multiplexed network; modifying one or more I/Ointerfaces of the server to receive and transmit TL1 messages;encapsulating the TL1 messages to send to the virtual network operatingcenter.
 24. A service to provision and commission a wavelength divisionmultiplexed network, comprising; acquiring configuration information ofall elements coupled to the wavelength division multiplexed; acquiringconfiguration information of at least one I/O interface of a servercoupled to the wavelength division multiplexed network; modifying the atleast one I/O interface of the server to receive and transmit commandsunderstandable by the all elements of the wavelength divisionmultiplexed network; determining which elements of the wavelengthdivision multiplexed network should receive and transmit data of thesame protocol and data rate; determining which pathways of thewavelength division multiplexed network are redundant; determiningalternative pathways of the wavelength division multiplexed network;determining protection switching for the wavelength division multiplexednetwork; determining whether and the type of regeneration commands forthe elements of the wavelength division multiplexed network; andrepresenting the wavelength division multiplexed network in a virtualnetwork operating center coupled to the interface and to the server.